Saturday, February 27, 2010
SeaWorld faces major public relations challenge after whale attack
Veteran trainer Dawn Brancheau, 40, was killed Wednesday at the close of the lunchtime show by the killer whale Tilikum in front of a horrified audience. SeaWorld has halted Shamu shows at the Orlando theme park and at sister parks in San Antonio and San Diego while it reviews the death.
Marketing and public relations experts say what the company does in coming days will be key to preserving its image.
Glenn Bunting, managing director for the Los Angeles-based crisis management firm Sitrick and Co. said SeaWorld needs to respond promptly and proactively.
"They need to review every safety precaution," he said. "They need to explain how it happened, why it happened and make sure it doesn't happen again to reassure the public."
The company stumbled during its first post-attack press conference. Orlando SeaWorld President Dan Brown did not immediately correct a sheriff's spokesman who said Brancheau accidentally fell into the water, and Brown himself said only that she "drowned in an incident with one of our killer whales."
SeaWorld acknowledged two hours later that Tilikum had grabbed Brancheau by her ponytail and yanked her into the water. The park then made its head animal trainer available to the media to explain and defend its methods of training and maintaining its whales.
Larry L. Smith, president of the Institute for Crisis Management, in Louisville, defended SeaWorld's response.
"They've not overreacted. They've not gone into a stall. They're not ducking the media," he said. And, he said, they had the advantage that the attack occurred the same day the head of Toyota testified before Congress about his own company's public relations crisis and broke down crying.
Smith said the attack could actually drive up attendance of at least one demographic — teens and young adults.
"It's not going to draw families necessarily or older people who would typically visit there, but there is an age group that gets excited about the risks and the potential for drama and it may attract some of those folks," he said.
Peter Yesawich, chairman of Ypartnership, an Orlando marketing firm that specializes in travel and entertainment, said SeaWorld enjoys a reputation as a family friendly and animal friendly company, which should help it recover from the crisis. In Florida, its veterinarians have been known to respond to cases of injured marine animals in the wild.
Yesawich said SeaWorld also showed responsibility by shutting down its killer whale shows until it can assess what happened. And fatal accidents at other theme parks — such as last summer's Disney World monorail crash that killed the ride's operator — don't stop the public from attending.
"It's one of these tragic, unpredictable instances that I personally don't think is going to do any long-term damage to the SeaWorld brand," he said.
Denise DeVore, 36, a photographer from Beacon, N.Y., visited the park with her 3-year-old daughter Wednesday and said she felt it was safe for the public. DeVore said she thinks SeaWorld plays an important role in educating people about marine life.
But will she return?
She echoed several other parents who were torn, though not because of the attack.
"The question is should we have whales in captivity? These are wild animals," DeVore said, adding, "But my daughter loves those dolphins."
Friday, February 26, 2010
Cruise ship illness identified as norovirus, 413 passengers stricken
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spokesman Jay Dempsey said samples taken from ill passengers on the Celebrity Mercury confirmed the virus.
Celebrity Cruise spokeswoman Cynthia Martinez said 413 of the more than 2,600 passengers and crew had symptoms including upset stomachs, vomiting and diarrhea.
Martinez said only 31 passengers were expected to be in isolation in their rooms when the vessel makes its scheduled arrival in Charleston early Friday. The crew conducted enhanced cleaning of the ship to prevent the spread of the illness, she said.
An extra doctor and two nurses came aboard in St. Kitts, in the Leeward Islands, and were sailing back to Charleston.
Norovirus is often to blame for similar symptoms in closed quarters like those on cruise ships and in day care centers.
The Celebrity Mercury is due to leave Charleston again on Friday evening with about 1,900 passengers. Martinez said she did not expect the departure to be delayed.
Dempsey said representatives from the agency's Vessel Sanitation Program were to meet the ship when it arrives and the ship will be cleaned completely before it leaves again.
"It's standard operating procedure. However, in the event of an outbreak, it's a little more intense in terms of the cleaning and everything else that goes on and in terms of reporting to vessel sanitation personnel," he said.
The vessel left on Feb. 15 from a state where health officials have reported twice as many cases of norovirus as normal this winter. Officials say the virus can stay on surfaces like doorknobs and handrails and can spread quickly.
According to the CDC website, there were two outbreaks of norovirus, which causes stomach flu, last winter on the Celebrity Mercury.
In all, the agency investigated 15 outbreaks of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships calling at American ports during 2009.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Fist full-body scanners to be installed in Boston
The plan is to install three machines at Logan International Airport, according to a homeland security official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement has not yet been made. In the next two weeks, officials plan to install another machine at Chicago's O'Hare International.
The rest of the 150 machines that were purchased with $25 million from President Obama's 2009 stimulus plan are expected to be installed in airports by the end of June, another homeland security official, spokeswoman Amy Kudwa, said.
The use of the scanners in airports is key to the Obama administration's plans to improve airport security because of their ability to show objects hidden on the body. Body scanners have been available for years, but their deployment has been slowed by objections from privacy advocates.
After a Nigerian man allegedly attempted to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner last Christmas, Obama called for purchasing hundreds more of the machines on top of 150 already announced last year. Other countries have also signed on to use the technology, including Nigeria and the Netherlands, where the final leg of the man's flight originated.
The passenger allegedly hid the explosives in his underwear, and the materials went undetected as he went through screening in Nigeria and Amsterdam.
Experts have said that the full-body screeners would not have picked up the suspect's hidden explosives.
The machines show the body's contours on a computer stationed in a private room removed from the security checkpoints. A person's face is never shown and the person's identity is supposedly not known to the screener reviewing the computer images.
Still, the American Civil Liberties Union has denounced the machines as a "virtual strip search."
The new scanners have not been available since the Obama administration announced last February it would provide $1 billion for airport screening as part of its stimulus plan.
In May, the administration detailed how that money would be spent — including $25 million for the new scanners. Between May and September, the department asked contractors to provide proposals for building the scanners.
Competing models were tested over the summer, the homeland security official said.
The department awarded the contract to California-based Rapiscan at the end of September.
In the past five months, airports and the Transportation Security Administration worked to get construction and electrical permits necessary to install the machines.
Boston and Chicago were selected based on risk, the official said, and whether the airports were physically able to install the machines and provide screeners to operate them.
Currently 40 full-body scanners are operated in 19 airports across the country, official said. Six of those machines are being used instead of the standard magnetometer screening machines that most U.S. passengers go through before boarding an airplane.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Report on diabetes drug causes concern..Jay Etwaru assuring his customers...
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Monday, February 22, 2010
Supreme Clientele Travel informed several neighborhood children today on how to exercise caution when playing outdoors
This map displays the location of sexual offenders and predators thatlive within the specified radius of 5 miles of Herring Ct. inPoinciana Fl, 34759Supreme Clientele Travel informed several neighborhood children today on how to exercise caution when playing outdoors. The Informationprovided by Florida Sexual Offender/Predator Registry was displayedand photos were shown with car descriptions so that children in the neighborhood can be aware of these predators and the dangers theyimpose in our community. I was only able to speak and inform ahandful of my neighbors today but I will be looking into organizing a larger event where more children can attend and receive the necessaryinformation to keep them safe!
tired of waiting on long lines for attraction tickets?
Saturday, February 20, 2010
The Treasures of King Tut return to New York!
NEW Sightseeing Exhibit in 2010
The Treasures of King Tut - After more than 30 years, the treasures of Tutankhamen make their long-awaited return to New York in a dazzling, once-in-a-lifetime exhibition. This New York engagement will be the LAST OPPORTUNITY to see these priceless artifacts before they leave North America forever. Beginning April 22 at Discovery Times Square Exposition.
| Rates from: $263.00 per person for 2-night complete package |
Your King Tut Exhibit Vacation Includes:
- Accommodations for 2-nights or longer at a midtown Manhattan hotel within walking distance of Discovery Times Square and the King Tut Exhibit
- All state and local taxes
- Admission to King Tut exhibit
- And much more
| King Tut Exhibit | |
- Objects from King Tut’s tomb include his royal diadem, the crown found on his head when the tomb was discovered.
- See one of the boy king's four gold and precious stone inlaid canopic coffinettes that contained his mummified internal organs.
- Learn about the extraordinary discovery of Tut’s tomb and the beliefs and funerary processes of ancient Egypt.
- This exhibit features over 130 amazing treasures belonging to King Tut and many of the most significant rulers of ancient Egypt
- View results from the latest scientific testing conducted on King Tut’s mummy, and what it is telling researchers about his life and death.
- This exhibit is more than twice the size of the exhibition that took New York by storm in the 1970s.Over six million people have attended the King Tut Exhibition worldwide.
Exhibit runs April 23, 2010 - January 2, 2011
Open 7 days a week, 10am–10pm
44th Street between 7th & 8th Avenues
For more information and bookings call Supreme Clientele Travel (407)413-9578
Supreme Clientele
Carmelo Rivera
A vacation where you are free to do whatever!
NCL started it all with Freestyle Cruising® – where people can enjoy a cruise without being handed a schedule. A vacation where you are free to do whatever. And now we’re following one success with another. Welcome to Norwegian Epic: NCL’s incredible new ship that reinvents cruising yet again. You’ll want to be one of the first to experience this ship’s day and night entertainment where you can wander from one exciting venue to another. Aboard Epic, there are as many ways to have fun as there are to have dinner. And she’s got the most innovative and wide-ranging accommodations at sea. Norwegian Epic sails summer 2010. Be there. Amenities, Bars, & LoungesFrom French Riviera chic and Ibiza style to Miami trendy and Vegas flair, Norwegian Epic’s non-stop entertainment venues give off an international vibe. You can quench your thirst for excitement at Spice H20’s day-and-night pool experience with live DJ action and big screen. You could find yourself wrapped in faux fur at the 17F-degree Ice Bar (the first at sea) or at the adults-only Posh Beach Club. Plus, there’s a full-action casino, first-class spa, upscale cigar room, wine and champagne tasting and lots more.
EntertainmentWhen we say we've changed the face of cruising entertainment, we mean that literally. For the first time ever, the award-winning Blue Man Group is coming to the sea and they're performing exclusively aboard Norwegian Epic. Get ready for entertainment pandemonium with an unexpected and thoroughly fun combination of music, comedy and multi-media theatrics. And that's not all, because you'll find live entertainment all over the ship – from the acrobatic spectacular of Cirque Dreams® and Dinner to the hilarious improv of The Second City® comedy troupe and lots more.
For more information and booking quotes call Supreme Clientele Travel (407)413-9578
Friday, February 19, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Disney Cruise Line 3 and 4 Night Cruises
Supreme Clientele Travel offers Disney Cruise Line 3-Night Bahamian Cruises. A refreshing weekend getaway to the historic isle of Nassau and Castaway Cay—Disney's private island retreat. On a vacation that's well-suited to both first-time cruisers and families that love to sail, your voyage is paired with legendary Disney service, exquisite dining and world-class entertainment and recreation.
In Nassau, spend a day experiencing a blend of Old World charm and tropical recreation. From there, you set sail for Castaway Cay, an entire island reserved exclusively for Guests of Disney Cruise Line. In a setting themed as a "castaway" community, enjoy the best in beach recreation, relaxation, leisure and shopping before beginning the journey home. For more information, brochures and reservations call Supreme Clientele Travel (407)413-9578
ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqxFcWrwNcg
TSA takes explosives screening to fliers
Airport screeners for the first time will begin roving through airports taking chemical swabs from passengers and their bags to check for explosives, the Transportation Security Administration said Tuesday. The program, already tested at five airports after the attempted Christmas Day bomb plot on a U.S.-bound airliner, begins nationwide in a few weeks, TSA spokeswoman Sterling Payne said. Screeners will push carts with bomb-detection machines around airport gates and checkpoint lines to randomly check passengers' hands and carry-on bags for explosive residue.
Metal detectors now used at checkpoints can't spot materials such as the powdered explosives that bombing suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab allegedly hid in his underwear to get through a checkpoint in Amsterdam's airport.
Abdulmutallab is accused of trying to blow up Northwest Flight 253 over Detroit, where it landed safely.
"Had Abdulmutallab been subjected to a (chemical) inspection, there's a high probability it would have picked up the explosives," RAND Corp. security analyst Brian Jenkins said. "The machines are extraordinarily sensitive."
Shortly after the Dec. 25 incident, the TSA ran a 17-day test at the five airports to see whether bomb-sensing equipment could be rolled on carts to check random passengers.
The microwave-oven-size detectors are usually stationary and are a common sight at airport checkpoints, where screeners swipe a small swab along a bag or a passenger's hand. The swab is then run through a reader that can detect minute amounts of explosives.
The machines are so sensitive that alarms can sound for passengers who have recently taken heart pills containing nitroglycerin, or if they have recently fired guns, Jenkins said. The machines also are used on checked luggage.
The TSA plans to spend $40 million next year to buy 800 new briefcase-size bomb sensors that are even more portable, according to the 2011 budget.
The TSA's Payne called the sensors "flexible screening technology" that can be used on passengers "throughout the airport."
Using the sensors randomly on passengers as they wait to board airplanes or in security lines will "create increasing uncertainty for the adversaries, which is always positive," Jenkins said.
The American Civil Liberties Union, which strongly opposes screening machines that create images of passengers under their clothing, does not object to the sensors. "That's less invasive," ACLU policy counsel Mike German said.
Airline passengers have noticed the sensors used increasingly at checkpoints.
Michael Nugent, 65, of Rochester, found it annoying when a screener tested his shoes for explosives last month at Dayton International Airport after they went through an X-ray machine. Screeners are "reactive because of what happened on Christmas Day," Nugent said.
When photographer Margaret Bowles of Houston went through security at Newark International Airport last month, a screener checked each lens and camera body in her bag.
"Usually they just swipe the edge of the bag," Bowles, 57, said. Checking each item "is a little more inconvenient, but I don't really blame them for being more thorough given what happened."
Summer Nightastic@Walt Disney World Theme Parks
For park tickets call Supreme Clientele Travel (407)413-9578
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Jay-Z concert tickets @Madison Square Garden
Jay-Z
Tue, Mar 02 2010 8:00 PMMadison Square Garden - New York, NY
For more info call (407)413-9578
Alicia Keys Concert Tickets available! Complete Tour Line Up..
Friday, February 12, 2010
CARMELO RIVERA EARNS TOP HONORS AT NCL UNIVERSITY
NEWS PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
Contact: Carmelo Rivera
Phone 407-413-9578
Fax 206-600-5380
Email c_rivera@supremeclienteletravel.biz CARMELO RIVERA EARNS TOP HONORS AT NCL UNIVERSITY
Award-winning cruise line presents its new class of Freestyle Certified agents
Poinciana,Florida February 12, 2010 Norwegian Cruise Line is proud to announce that Carmelo Rivera has earned the necessary credits to graduate from its online travel agent university, NCL University. This progressive, state-of-the art online school is geared to deliver an enhanced level of knowledge and insight into Norwegian Cruise Line’s unique Freestyle Cruising philosophy, their cruising destinations, ship programs and operations, and many other “behind-the-scenes” elements not available anywhere else. Each graduate is required, within one year, to earn a minimum number of credits through a choice of accredited courses and electives. The rigorous curriculum includes testing at every level in order to move forward.
Norwegian Cruise Line’s online university opened its virtual doors in 2008 and is one of the most innovative and award-winning programs available to travel agents today. With thousands of registered students and growing, NCL U has expanded its training from the interactive experience of its online program to a continuing, first-hand educational experience that includes a PhD@ Sea program aboard its ships. “At Norwegian Cruise Line, we highly recommend the use of a travel professional when booking one of our cruises,” says Andy Stuart, Executive Vice President, Global Sales and Passenger Services. “We have invested in NCL U’s offerings to insure our travel partners have a thorough knowledge of our Freestyle Cruising product as well as an expertise in marketing and sales skills. In this way, we can be sure our guests will know they are relying on an expert who knows our product inside and out." Supreme Clientele
Carmelo Rivera
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For more info call Supreme Clientele Travel (407)413-9578 10,000 TSA staff to get secret intel
The Transportation Security Administration plan aims to help its officers spot terrorists by giving them more detailed information about tactics and threats, TSA officials and security experts said. The agency, viewed by some as throngs of workers pawing through luggage at checkpoints, hopes to empower its higher-level workers as part of an effort to professionalize airport security.
The 10,000 people in line to get classified information are managers, supervisors and "behavior detection officers" who roam airports looking for suspicious people. They represent about 20% of the TSA's airport workforce and exclude screeners who scan passengers and bags.
The information will give workers details about terrorist "tactics, planning, operations and threats," TSA spokeswoman Sterling Payne said. Those details "give context to things they see every day which may otherwise not appear unusual" and let workers "exercise discretion" in dealing with travelers, Payne added. She would not elaborate on specific intelligence the workers will get. All TSA airport workers now get daily intelligence briefings that include less sensitive information.
So far, 750 people have been cleared to get classified information, Payne said, adding that it will take two more years to get all 10,000 workers cleared.
The information could include copies of terrorist training videos or tips vaguely describing a terrorism suspect, experts said. "Some classified information seems innocuous but is classified because it was derived from an intercepted phone conversation," said Steven Aftergood, an intelligence-policy specialist for the Federation of American Scientists.
"This could enable broader sharing of some kinds of sensitive information," Aftergood said.
TSA workers are getting "Secret" clearance — which ranks above Confidential but below Top Secret.
About 2.5 million Americans have security clearances, many of them in the military or working for defense contractors, and some working for the Homeland Security Department, Aftergood said.
A "limited number" of Border Patrol agents can receive classified information, said T.J. Bonner, head of a Border Patrol labor union.
Since the 9/11 attacks prompted criticism about a lack of information sharing, the federal government has increasingly given classified details to state and local authorities, Aftergood said.
"This is a brilliant idea," said Randall Larsen, director of the Institute for Homeland Security and a former National War College professor. "It shows the TSA is focusing more on where it should be focused — on the people getting on airplanes."
Others fear a greater risk that intelligence will be leaked. "When you open security secrets to that large a group, it could lead to somebody who's dangerous finding out information that enables a terrorist attack itself," said Michael Greenberger, head of the University of Maryland Center for Health and Homeland Security.
The TSA, created in 2002, has recently pushed to improve its operations and image. It has given screeners badges and sophisticated X-ray machines, created specialized jobs for people to analyze suspected bombs and suspicious passengers, and taken over the duty of checking boarding passes.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Southwest Cancels Flights Due to Winter Storm
JetBlue Suspends Flights Due to Northeast Storm
Blizzard paralyzes U.S. air travel
Airports in Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Newark were essentially shut down by heavy snow and high winds — a day after snow snarled flights in Chicago. At least 5,700 flights were canceled on Wednesday alone, according to a USA TODAY survey of carriers.
Airlines say they expect to cancel more than 1,000 flights today. By comparison, airlines canceled 2,700 flights in all of November, according to the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
"This is paralyzing to air transportation in the country," said David Castelveter, spokesman for the airline trade group, the Air Transport Association. It will take days for a final tally, but the storms probably caused one of the biggest impacts on air travel in a decade, Castelveter said.
Airlines made the deep cuts in their schedules in an attempt to keep jets and passengers from becoming stranded. Thousands of flights were grounded last weekend by a storm that hammered Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.
Tens of thousands of flights were canceled for two days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
This week's storm that enveloped the East Coast from Virginia to Cape Cod also caused significant delays and cancellations at New York City's John F. Kennedy International and La Guardia airports, according to FlightStats, a flight-tracking company.
Another storm that hit the upper Midwest on Tuesday forced airlines to cancel hundreds of flights to and from Chicago's O'Hare International and Midway. Delays and cancellations continued last night in Chicago and across a band from Milwaukee to Pittsburgh, FlightStats reported.
US Airways had the most cancellations, nearly 1,700 out of its 3,060 departures, spokeswoman Valerie Wunder said. Delta Air Lines grounded 960 flights, spokesman Trebor Banstetter said.
The delays have tried travelers' patience. Bill Pullen, 42, of Washington, D.C., has been trying to get home from near Cancun, Mexico, since Saturday. By Wednesday, he made it to Fort Lauderdale.
"As of right now, we are booked to fly home (this) afternoon," Pullen said. "I am keeping my fingers crossed."
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Cops using YouTube to find criminals
Those involved in the fight had scattered, and witnesses were not talking, police spokeswoman Debbie George said.
Days later, George said, investigators got a break — via YouTube. Cellphone videos of the fight had been posted on the video-sharing website.
"The video itself was very clear," George said. Police and school resource officers were able to pick out the suspects. Seven people identified in the video are awaiting trial.
YouTube has no way of knowing how often police tap into its videos to make arrests, company spokesman Scott Rubin said, but police across the country say they are increasingly using YouTube and other online social networks to root out criminals.
"Technology has revolutionized law enforcement in many ways," said Jack Rinchich, president of the National Association of Chiefs of Police. "Sometimes people are pretty liberal about what they put on (social networking sites)," he said.
In January, police in Chattanooga, Tenn., discovered an online forum in which local residents were planning illegal drag races, department spokeswoman Rebecca Royval said. Officers staked out an area where a drag race was expected and ticketed four racers caught in the act.
Los Angeles police used images on YouTube and the photo website Flickr to identify people involved in riots after the June 2009 NBA Championship, Lt. Paul Vernon said.
In November, police in Minneapolis and St. Paul, arrested four people for assault after seeing videos they had posted of themselves, Minneapolis police spokesman Jesse Garcia said.
"For many years, they've had (the television show) America's Dumbest Criminals," Garcia said. "It's people like this that feed that."
People who post such videos do so, in part, because they "believe there is a degree of anonymity on the Internet," Nashville criminal defense attorney David Raybin said. When he gets a new client, Raybin said, "the first thing I tell them is, 'You are shutting down your Facebook account.' "
Rubin said YouTube prohibits content that is intended to incite violence and videos of illegal activities. The company relies on users to flag violators, he said.
Facebook also is aiding police. Garcia said a Minneapolis man accused in a shooting was recently arrested after telling a friend about the crime in a Facebook message. In December, Massachusetts authorities caught a child-rape suspect after learning about his whereabouts on Facebook, state police spokesman Dave Procopio said.
Airport scanners stir fears over security lines
Scanners that look through passengers' clothing to find hidden weapons are significantly larger than the metal detectors they will replace. And they take at least five times longer to scan a single passenger.
"Those machines have a footprint that we don't have the space for," said Tim Anderson, operations chief at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, which will get scanners this year.
Steve Lott of the International Air Transport Association, an airline group, said scanners "would lead to significant passenger delays at the checkpoint."
Transportation Security Administration spokesman Greg Soule said the scanners will not "significantly increase" checkpoint lines. The agency will help find the best location for the machines, he said, adding that "TSA's top priority is enhancing security."
The TSA plans to install 950 scanners at airports in the next two years, a move driven partly by the recent attempt to bomb an airliner near Detroit. Suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab boarded the plane in Amsterdam with explosives in his underwear.
The first new scanners will be installed this month. Most will be used on passengers in "primary" screening as they enter airport checkpoints and put belongings through an X-ray machine, Soule said. About 40 scanners have been operating in 19 airports for more than a year, mostly for passengers requiring extra screening.
The scanners take about 15 seconds to check a passenger compared with "a few seconds" for a metal detector, Soule said. The extra time should not create backups, Soule said, because checkpoint lines are usually slowed by passengers putting carry-on items through X-ray machines.
Lott said scans can take 40 seconds for passengers unfamiliar with the portal-style machines that are up to 6 feet wide.
Christopher Bidwell, security chief for the Airports Council International, said he was pleased the TSA is working with airports to address lines and space constraints. "Certain airports just don't have the real estate" for scanners, Bidwell said.
The scanners already in use have been welcomed by passengers, particularly as an alternative to pat-downs, the TSA says. Passengers who decline to be scanned are searched by hand.
The mass installation worries airports. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport expects to get five scanners, which could push checkpoint lines into a main corridor, airport spokesman Perry Cooper said. "This will be an impact for us," Cooper said.
Metropolitan Oakland International Airport officials are working with TSA to find the "optimum placement" for scanners, acting airport director Deborah Ale Flint said. "We have space constraints in both of our checkpoints," Flint said.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Universal Orlando Resort Celebrates 15 Years of Mardi Gras
Universal Orlando will begin its 15th year of Mardi Gras February 6th, 2010. The event will run every Saturday night through April 17, with additional dates
on Sunday, February 14 and Friday, April 9. Mardi Gras is included in regular
admission to Universal Studios.Universal Studios Mardi Gras Event is the biggest and most authentic celebration
outside of New Orleans. It features hundred of costumed characters, tons of souvenir
beads, Cajun cuisine, an elaborate parade and live concerts by artists like Flo Rida
and Sheryl Crow.This year’s parade is being handled by Blaine Kern Artists, Inc., the same company
that designs the floats for the New Orleans parade. They are incorporating new elements
into some of the most memorable floats in the events history. This elaborate Orlando
parade will feel even more authentic during the 2010 celebration as its theme is heritage.Guests who attend the Mardi Gras Celebration will also be able to take advantage of
Universal Studios exciting rides, like Hollywood Rip, Ride Rockit, and groove to music
at Universal’s very own “French Quarter,” a replica of the New Orleans’ famed district.
• Sat., Feb. 6: KC and The Sunshine Band
• Sat., Feb. 13: Heart
• Sun., Feb. 14: Kool & the Gang
• Sat., Feb. 20: Blondie
• Sat., Feb. 27: Dierks Bentley
• Sat., March 6: Akon
• Sat., March 13: Aretha Franklin
• Sat., March 20: Miranda Lambert
• Sat., March 27: 3 Doors Down
• Sat., April 3: Beach Boys
• Fri., April 9: Sheryl Crow
• Sat., April 10: Flo Rida
• Sat., April 17: Chicago
For tickets & more info call Supreme Clientele Travel (407)413-9578
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
What airline travelers with lost baggage may be owed
The U.S. Department of Transportation in October clarified an existing rule that carriers cover all expenses incurred by passengers because of lost or delayed luggage up to $3,300 per traveler on domestic flights.
The department noted that several airlines had policies that would reimburse travelers only for essential items bought after 24 hours, and only on the outbound legs of their trips.
"Travelers should not have to pay for toiletries or other necessities while they wait for baggage misplaced by airlines," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in a written statement issued then. "We expect airlines to comply with all of our regulations and will take enforcement action if they do not."
Airlines may also offer travelers whose bags don't arrive with them some complimentary emergency items. Delta, for instance, will often give passengers a kit containing a toothbrush, toothpaste and mouthwash.
Despite the federal rules, airlines generally state in their contracts of carriage that they won't reimburse passengers for the loss of electronics, or other high-value items.
Once a delayed bag arrives, carriers typically deliver it to its owner. But Southwest will give a travel credit that can be used on a future flight if a passenger picks up the bag.
If a passenger is left empty-handed at the baggage carousel, George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog, recommends that travelers keep receipts, even for clothing they've had awhile, to show for reimbursement. Taking out travel insurance before a flight is also a way to protect against potential losses, he says.
Passengers can give airlines another way to get their bags to them if luggage tags come off during a journey, says Steve Lott of the International Air Transport Association.
"It's maybe not a bad idea to put a copy of your itinerary in the bag or outside pocket," Lott says. That, he says, "would be a real easy way for an airline to find out where you're going and how to reunite you with your bag."
Airport-security plan calls for 500 body scanners in '11
Body scanners that look under airline passengers' clothing for hidden weapons could be in nearly half the nation's airport checkpoints by late 2011, according to an Obama administration plan announced Monday. The $215 million proposal to acquire 500 scanners next year, combined with the 450 to be bought this year, marks the largest addition of airport-security equipment since immediately after the 9/11 attacks. There are only 40 body scanners in a total of 19 airports now.
"It's a move in the right direction," aviation-security consultant Douglas Laird said. "We need to scan all passengers."
The push for more scanners accelerated after the failed Christmas Day attempt to bomb an airliner near Detroit. Suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab boarded Flight 253 in Amsterdam after walking through a metal detector with powder explosives hidden in his underwear, authorities say. Police allege he tried to trigger an explosion by igniting the powder, which caught fire but did not cause any serious damage before Abdulmutallab was subdued by the crew and passengers.
Privacy advocate Marc Rotenberg called the scanners "a deeply invasive intrusion" that would inconvenience millions of innocent travelers with screening that takes longer than metal detectors. "We'll have another Homeland Security Department program for the war on terror used almost exclusively on Americans," said Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center.
Laird said the administration should emphasize installing body scanners in major European airports "because that's where the threats come out of." European countries such as the United Kingdom and the Netherlands are adding the scanners. Countries such as Germany and Italy are considering the technology, which creates black-and-white images of passengers under their clothing.
Senior House Appropriations Committee member Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., welcomes the plan for 500 new scanners. "The American people understand that this threat is real, and if we can provide equipment that will make their flights safer and prevent another attack, they will be supportive," Lowey said.
Among the other aviation-security upgrades the administration proposed in its 2011 budget:
• Increasing the number of airport officers who patrol terminals looking for suspicious passengers to 3,350 from 3,000.
• Increasing the number of bomb-sniffing dogs used at airports to 1,080 from 805.
• Adding an unspecified number of air marshals to international flights.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Carnival Continues to Deliver Relief Supplies to Haiti
Carnival Cruise Lines has shipped more than 2,000 pounds of relief supplies to Haiti to assist those affected by the devastating earthquake. Donated by Carnival employees, the supplies include water, blankets, diapers, protein bars and other non-perishable food items and are being shipped and distributed to Haiti by the University of Miami’s Project Medishare, a disaster relief organization. The company continues to collect donations from employees and expects to ship another load of supplies early next month. In addition to collecting and donating much-needed supplies, Carnival employees, both shipboard and shoreside, are organizing fundraisers to assist those affected by the earthquake. Additionally, guests sailing with the line have the opportunity to donate to the American Red Cross for Haitian Relief and Development fund via their Sail & Sign shipboard accounts.
These efforts are part of a corporate-wide relief initiative that will contribute at least $5 million to earthquake relief. The $5 million donation includes a large contribution from parent company Carnival Corp. & plc, as well as fund-raising drives within its affiliated brands worldwide. Carnival Corp. & plc’s donation has been earmarked for UNICEF, the University of Miami’s Project Medishare, American Red Cross and Save the Children.